A new partnership gives FFA members in Pennsylvania a glimpse into the career opportunities available in the ever-growing sports field management industry.
The Sports Turf Managers Association (STMA), Keystone Athletic Field Managers Organization (KAFMO) and Penn State University came together to launch the Pennsylvania FFA Turfgrass Science program, complete with a turfgrass management career development event (CDE) at the state level. The program’s primary goal is to ensure sports field management job openings have qualified, trained candidates to fill them.
While STMA provides support by creating the turfgrass science curriculum and CDE planning, Penn State University created video tutorials to help agriculture teachers and FFA advisors effectively share the curriculum with their students; KAFMO provides the platform for hosting the content.
After a delay in 2020 due to the pandemic, the first Pennsylvania FFA Turfgrass Management CDE took place virtually in May.
“The event included a multiple-choice test and identification of turfgrass species, broadleaf and grassy weeds, diseases and insects, along with an oral presentation,” says STMA education manager Kristen Althouse, who was instrumental in designing and hosting the competition. “In the future when we have in-person events, we’ll add in new components to test students’ knowledge and understanding, including additional hands-on elements.”
Althouse also notes that STMA is working to bring the event to the national FFA competition. For it to reach that level, several state FFA associations must first implement turfgrass management CDEs. To date, Pennsylvania is the fifth state to join the ranks, following New Jersey, Oklahoma, Virginia and South Carolina.
“If a young person enjoys sports and is considering a career that would allow them to spend the majority of their time outdoors — not behind a desk — sports field management could be an area of interest and a great college major for them. They might not realize that if they don’t learn about the industry in high school,” says Penn State University Extension educator Jeffrey Fowler. “As a result, we want to start cultivating that interest sooner rather than later.”
Both Fowler and Althouse agree there are ample opportunities in the sports field management sector, pointing to careers as golf course superintendents; groundskeepers for professional and amateur baseball, soccer, football, lacrosse and other sports; and parks and recreation maintenance coordinators, just to name a few.
Interested in learning more? Take a look at the Pennsylvania FFA Turfgrass Management CDE info page and the Turfgrass Curriculum Overview.
